Knowledge and awareness
of history and society are important ingredients
of a liberal education. The Department of History
offers general courses for all students, a major
and a minor in history, and preparation for
students who plan to continue study at the graduate
level, to teach history, or to enter related
fields.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A MAJOR
IN HISTORY

A minimum of 36 semester
hours in History, including HY 101, 102, 135,
136, one course in African (HY 362), Asian (HY 103, 104, 366, 367, 368, 461), Latin American (HY 228, 321, 323, 325,
326, 429), or Middle Eastern History (HY 364, HY 365, HY 465); one research seminar (HY 441, 442, or 443); and 21 semester hours of electives.
These electives must include a minimum of fifteen
semester hours in courses numbered 300 or above
taken at this University, of which six semester
hours must be in courses at the 400 level. Majors
should seek as broad an acquaintance with the
varieties of historical experience as possible.
A strong major program should include upper-level
courses numbered 300 or above in the history
of Europe, the United States, Latin America,
and non-Western societies. Students pursuing a degree in History also must have a minor in another discipline.

All first-time freshmen must successfully complete CAS 100: New Student Seminar as a degree requirement. Students must enroll during their first term at USA, except for summer-entry students who must enroll in the fall semester following entry.

GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS
FOR HISTORY MAJORS

General Education Requirements
for History are specified in the College
of Arts and Sciences section. Note that Area IV requirements are partially satisfied and
the Sequence Requirement is fully satisfied by the
major requirements specified above.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A MINOR
IN HISTORY

A minimum of 21 semester
hours in History. Students must complete a six
hour sequence in either Western Civilization
(101 and 102) or US History (135 and 136) and
15 semester hours of electives, of which nine
semester hours must be taken in courses numbered
300 or above at this University.

HONORS IN HISTORY

To be awarded Honors in
History, a student must:

a)

complete the
standard requirements for a major in History

b)

have a 3.5
overall GPA (University requirement)

c)

have a 3.5
History GPA (Department requirement)

d)

receive agreement
of a member of the History Department to serve
as mentor

e)

receive permission
of the Department Chair to undertake this program

f)

complete
a Senior Honor Paper (HY 499), with a grade
of "B" or "A", in addition to the standard History
requirements. HY 499: Senior Honors Paper (six
semester hours credit) may be counted toward
three hours of the 36 required for a major and
toward three hours of the six 400-level hours
required for the major. Thus, the student receiving
honors in History will be required to take a total of
39 hours in History instead of 36 (In HY 499,
the student will normally take three hours in
Fall Semester for research and three in Spring
for writing, though occasionally this may be
spread out over a longer period. A final committee
of three or more faculty, which may include
a representative of the University Honors Program,
will conduct an oral defense)

NOTE: 1) one need not
be receiving University Honors to obtain Honors
in History; 2) a certificate will be awarded to the student indicating that they have been awarded "Honors in History."

GRADUATE STUDIES

The Master of Arts degree
in History is designed to meet the varied needs
of students. There are two study tracks or plans
for completion of the degree: thesis, non-thesis.

Normally, those who wish
to enter a Ph.D. program, law school, or certain
positions in archives, government, and community
college teaching positions pursue the thesis
option. Other students pursuing positions where
a thesis is not needed often study in the non-thesis
track.

For further information
on the M.A. program, see the departmental booklet
Graduate Program in History.

REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION

Students are admitted
each semester. In addition to Graduate School
requirements, all applicants must submit GRE
scores, a statement of purpose for undertaking
graduate work in History and provide three letters
of recommendation directly to the Office
of Admissions. The following criteria
supplement Graduate School criteria (see Categories
of Admission).

REGULAR ADMISSION

1.

At least twenty-one
semester hours of college work in History approved
by the Graduate Committee of the Department
of History.

2.

An average
of B (3.0) or better in the junior-
and senior-level history courses presented in
fulfillment of requirement 1.

PROVISIONAL ADMISSION

Applicants whose undergraduate
preparation in History does not meet the Graduate
History Committees full approval may,
at the discretion of the Committee and under
the regulations of the Graduate School, be admitted
provisionally and may be required to make up
deficiencies in undergraduate course work in
addition to fulfilling the regular degree requirements
listed as follows.

To qualify for Regular
Standing, a Provisional Admission student must
satisfy the general requirements of this Bulletin
and achieve a grade of A or B
in nine consecutive semester hours of acceptable
graduate course work.

NON-DEGREE STUDENTS

Students holding baccalaureate
degrees from accredited institutions of higher
education who are not interested in earning
an MA degree, or who are not yet ready to apply
for Regular Admission may enroll in a Non-Degree
status. A suitable background for the courses
to be taken is expected. Non-Degree students
may enroll only in courses offered at specific
times and places. They may not enroll in directed
studies courses.

GRADUATE ASSISTANTSHIPS

A limited number of assistantships
are awarded to incoming and returning graduate
students on a competitive basis. Assistantships
include a tuition waiver and a stipend, for
which students are asked to work 20 hours a
week, usually as teaching
assistants, in public history, or assisting
in the University Archives. Applications for
each academic year are due in the department
no later than March
15.

REQUIREMENTS FOR DEGREE

All candidates for the
Master of Arts degree in History, regardless
of which of the two tracks they are following,
must complete the following requirements:



A minimum
of 33 credit hours with grade of A
or B.



A minimum
of 20 credit hours completed at the University
of South Alabama.



A maximum
of 12 credit hours of 400-level courses, 400-level
work taken for graduate credit will require
extra work beyond what is expected of undergraduates.



Take
at least 21 credit hours at the 500 level, not
all of which must be History courses.



Complete HY
530 American Historiography.



Complete HY
540 Modern European Historiography.



Complete one
of the following research seminars: HY 581 or
HY 586 (HY 546, HY 553 or HY580 may be substituted,
if a research paper is completed).



Choose two of the following
fields and complete 12 credit hours in each:
American History
European History
Topical Fields

Note: A grade of C
or below is not considered a passing grade by
the Department of History. Students receiving
such a grade in a required course must repeat
the course.

The remaining requirements
are dictated by the track in which students
choose to study:

Non-Thesis



Complete comprehensive
examinations in two fields, one in American
and one in European History (see list of fields
above).



Complete HY
597 Professional Studies: Directed Field Research
or HY 592 The Teaching of History.

Thesis



Complete a
comprehensive examination in one field (see
list of fields on previous page) other than
the thesis field.



Complete six
credit hours of HY 599 Thesis.



Submit an
approved thesis prospectus.



Formally defend
their thesis. (Students must be enrolled in
at least one hour of HY 599 when they defend.)



Submit an
approved thesis in accordance with Graduate
School regulations.

M.A. in History with Class
A Teaching Certification

This is also know as the
Strength in Subject Matter Program.
Only students who hold a valid Class B Teaching
Certificate are eligible. Normally this applies
to students with a B.A. in Education at a university
or college in Alabama. Questions regarding eligibility
should be directed to the Deans Office
of the College of Education.

Students in this track
may pursue the thesis or non-thesis option.
In either case they must meet all requirements
outlined above, with the following exception:



A Survey of
Special Education course (either SPE 400 or
SPE 500), if not previously completed.